EUGENE, Ore. — Taking a trip to downtown Eugene just got a bit pricier. The city hiked parking rates.

The fee increase brings in an extra half a million dollars a year to the city.

The city hasn’t raised parking fees in more than 10 years. Now for every hour you park downtown, it will cost you an extra quarter, making the hourly rate $1. The daytime rate in city parking garages went from $3.50 to $6.

City managers say all this new revenue will help balance the parking budget and also help pay for more police patrols. Some residents aren’t buying it.

“I don’t get help with parking from my employer and my wages aren’t going up, so so for me it’s a couple $2-$3 more a day that I would have to spend just to come to work,” said downtown Eugene employee Mandie Jarvis.

“I think there are a lot more creative ways to do it rather then just drive business away from downtown,” said downtown vendor Darrell Olson.

“When you live in a city that you hope to be improving in and getting more people to come, it’s just sort of the hand-in-hand goes with improvements,” said Shelley Maynard, Pewter Rabbit Antiques Owner.

Business owners we spoke with had mixed views on whether this hike will affect sales. One business owner says she doesn’t think it will keep customers away. In fact, she keeps a bag of quarters in the store handy to accomodate her guests.